DC Fire Dept says "System Worked" In Controversial Emergency

WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- It took three days, but the District's fire chief finally addressed why an injuredpolice officer had to wait almost twenty minutes for an ambulance Tuesday night. That officer is still in the hospital in serious condition after being hit by a car while stopped on his motorcycle.

The remarks came during a bizarre press conference Friday afternoon. It was held at the fire departments headquarters, so you would expect the firechiefto do most of the talking. But that wasn't the case. Chief Kenneth Ellerbe didn't say a word until the end of the press conference when a WUSA9 reporter asked him to address his department's response time Tuesday night.

"I tell you our department responded as best it could," said Chief Ellerbe.

One of his Assistant Fire Chiefs went so far as to say, "Tuesday, the system worked."

Edward Smith, the president of city's firefighters union, disagrees.

"There was a delay of 8 minutes calling for mutual aid from Prince George's County. Communications should have known right off the bat that there were no units available and that mutual aid was necessary," said Smith.

To make matters worse,a stroke patient in Southeast had to be rushed to the hospital Thursday night on a fire truck. The closest ambulance was seven miles away.

"The reason an ambulance was selected seven miles away was not because we had numerous units out of service or broken. They were just running a lot of calls yesterday during rush hour because that's when the demand peaked," said Gerald Coles, Acting Assistant Fire Chief for Operations for DC Fire and EMS.

In an effort to ease the demand, the fire department announced Friday an EMS Redeployment Plan, which would keep two ambulances on standby at all times.

"The plan was implemented starting yesterday," said Chief Ellerbe.

The Chief says they've been working on the plan for months, and that the timing is just a coincidence. But Smith says this is the first he's ever about it and that the timing is highly questionable

"It's a step in the right direction, but two ambulances is not enough," said Smith.

The District's Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice, Paul Quander, has launched an investigation into Tuesday's nights lengthy response time.

"If there is responsibility at management, at supervision, or at the lowest level, everyone will be held accountable," said Quander.

Quander says there's alsoreason to believe that the person who hit the officer did so deliberately. Three people have already been arrested and charged in the hit and run, but more charges could be coming. D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier declined to talk about the case, except to say that her officer has a long recovery ahead.